The crowds were deafening with their cheers, the smell of food wafted from each of the tables, the ends of his fingers had gone numb from the repetitive movement, but none of that mattered to him. His eyes were trained on the two bots in the ring.
He obsessively watched his opponent's bot, timing the milliseconds it took for each movement, the range of each attack, and of course, the reflexes of his controller. Until finally, he felt he had enough information to go on the offensive.
With a satisfied breath and the press of a button, his Megabot's face switched from a smiling yellow circle to a smirking red one. And soon he found himself with the similar feeling of an adrenaline rush as his bot tore apart its opponent, eventually meeting a flood of dopamine as multiple stacks and rolls of money were awarded to him, signifying another win for him and his bot.
"Hiro! Hiro, don't make me come up there!"
His eyes slowly woke to the sounds of his aunt and the few rays of light that had seeped through an opening in his curtains. Late mornings weren't new to him, it came with the territory of winning late-night tournaments, but not having the usual burden of having to attend school, a burden that most people his age had, made things a lot easier for him. He groaned as he pulled the covers back over his head, falling back to sleep under the warmth and darkness of his blanket.
With a sigh his aunt walked in and in swift motions yanked the curtains open and pulled his blanket off him. His first reaction was annoyance and frustration, but seeing the expression on his aunt's face, it quickly changed to fear and panic.
"W-wait! Aunt Cass-"
With a tight grip she pinched and twisted Hiro's ear, causing him to abruptly get to his knees and shed any semblance of grogginess that he may have still had.
"Ouch ouch! OKAY OKAY - I'm up, I'm up!"
She finally let go and he plopped back onto his bed, glaring at her with his hands clutching his sore ear. She met his glare with a smirk.
"Come down to eat," she said in a sweet voice as she walked back downstairs.
Hiro eyed the discarded pillow with temptation but knew better than to test his aunt for the second time. "What's the point of graduating early if you can't even sleep in," he grumbled as he slowly got out of bed.
"Morning," said Tadashi from the dining table as Hiro came down the stairs. "Heard you got quite a wake up call."
"If by wake up call you mean being violently-"
"Ahem," interrupted Aunt Cass as she finished laying out the final dishes for breakfast.
"You were saying Hiro?" teased Tadashi playfully.
Hiro ignored him and grabbed a seat to join them.
"Hiro just because you don't have school anymore, doesn't mean you won't be following some semblance of a normal sleep schedule in this house," she said as she sat down as well.
"Yes ma'am," replied Hiro as he gave an eyeroll to both.
"Honestly, I don't know what you're doing up so late, with school out of the way it's not like you have to pull any all-nighters or anything like that anymore," she continued
"One," started Hiro, "I never had to pull any all-nighters before, even when I was in school."
"Congrats Einstein," interrupted Tadashi sarcastically.
"And two," continued Hiro, ignoring Tadashi's remark. "I'm simply enjoying one of the benefits of no longer being a slave to the education system," he gave Aunt Cass a glare as he rubbed his ear. "Or in this case trying to enjoy, would be more accurate."
Aunt Cass extended her arm toward Hiro's ear jokingly, chuckling when he flinched away. "How about you try and enjoy your natto."
Hiro begrudgingly ate. His mind drifted over his win from last night, the pay was pretty decent, and his finances were beginning to grow due to the numerous victories. Not that Aunt Cass or Tadashi knew, Hiro had kept his funding to an offshore account, since gambling on bot fighting was still very much illegal.
He didn't plan on stopping and the main reason he got into it was because he truly enjoyed it, the financial benefits were just a bonus. He'd been involved in bot fighting and gambling when he was in school, and ever since graduating he had spoiled himself by partaking in this joy a lot more often. But even with school out of the way, he was still only 14 years old and living with family, he couldn't exactly just come and go as he pleased.
"Well thanks for the food Aunt Cass," said Tadashi as he got up. "I've gotta head to the university, meeting up with a few friends to work on a project." He turned to Hiro, "If your busy schedule can handle it, you're welcome to come. I can show you around the lab again."
"As much as I enjoy your little nerd lab," said Hiro in boredom. "I think I'll pass," he said, pushing his food around uninterestedly with his fork.
"Come oooon," said Tadashi as he walked around Hiro and gripped his shoulder, swaying him back and forth in his chair.
"You shouldn't have this much energy this early," grumbled Hiro, sounding like a 60 year old grumpy senior.
"Fine, fine," said Tadashi as he let go. "Well I'll be off then," he announced, leaving the two alone.
Aunt Cass waved him goodbye and turned her attention back to Hiro. "If you think you're going to go back upstairs and sleep the day away, you are mistaken young man."
He really was hoping to go back to sleep, but dozing off anywhere in the house was too dangerous, especially with his Aunt around.
"N-no of course not, I'm…going out," he said.
His Aunt cocked any eyebrow, "out where?"
"To the library," he responded. "With school out of the way I wanted to broaden my knowledge, to more… non-academic topics."
"Oh, well that sounds lovely," she said, believing him. "Just be sure to keep your phone on you and hurry back in time for dinner." With that she kissed him on the cheek and went back to the cafe.
Hiro stood outside San Fransokyo Deluxe Resorts. The library thing was a total lie and in reality he just needed a place to sleep, and if that meant paying for a high-end hotel room, he'd do it.
Walking in, one of the first things he noticed was how out of place he was. Around him there were groups of company men in suits, retired rich elderly couples, and families decked out in luxurious wear.
He walked up to the receptionist nervously, barely being seen by the man sitting behind the computer.
"Uhm, excuse me?"
"Hmm? Oh! Sorry I didn't see you there. Were you separated from your family?" asked the man, confusion on his face as he looked Hiro up and down, while a plain blue hoodie would've been normal in most cases, it only emphasized how out of place Hiro looked to the man.
"No I…I was actually hoping to get a room," said Hiro innocently.
The man looked unamused, thinking this was some prank a random kid was playing on him. He clearly doubted a kid could afford anything, let alone a room at Deluxe Resorts, but policy made it that he had to take him seriously.
"A room huh? Sure ki- sir. Please note that drop-ins are usually more expensive and right now we only have our premium options available," he cringed at himself for actually having to act professional. "I understand if this changes thin-"
"Oh yeah that's fine. Any room's fine, I just need it for the day," interrupted Hiro, hoping to speed up the process.
"Alright then, just a moment," he began typing away, seeing the zeros increasing as he put the transaction in order, finally he turned the scanner over to Hiro, "Please go ahead and scan your card," he sighed, finally hoping this was the part where the kid left.
Except Hiro pulled out a card from inside the back of his hoodie, being too paranoid to keep a card connected to illegal activities in his wallet, he'd sewn a pocket there. He tapped and soon after saw the screen flash green, approving the transaction. He grabbed the key from the still staring receptionist and began heading to the elevator.
"D-do you need a receipt?" He called after Hiro, finally getting over his surprise.
Hiro simply waved him off, sighing as he got into the elevator, thanks to being in a premium room, he got to live on one of the top floors, though he only grumbled as it made the elevator ride longer.
He didn't bother to stop and check out the paintings and other artistic sculptures as he got out onto his floor's hallway. He also didn't bother enjoying the view and aesthetic when he'd entered and locked his room. All he really cared about was his bed, which he immediately collapsed on, drifting off to a peaceful slumber.
It had gotten late when he'd finally woken up, but still plenty of time to get home. The realization hit him when he realised he straight up paid for a luxurious hotel room, just so he could sleep. He was sure the thought would have lingered in his head more, if finances were something he really had to worry about.